Claudius

Claudius (1 August 10 BC-13 October 54 AD) was the Emperor of the Roman Empire from 41 to 54, succeeding Caligula and preceding Nero.

Biography
Claudius was the son of Roman general Nero Claudius Drusus and Antonia Minor, born in Lugdunum, Gaul (present-day Lyon, France). While he was young, he fell ill and gained a limp and slight deafness, causing his family to ostracize him and refuse to give him a public office. During the purges of Emperor Tiberius and his grand-nephew Caligula, Claudius survived due to his weakness, and he was the last man of his family by the time of Caligula's death in 41 AD. The Praetorian Guard, who assassinated Caligula, acclaimed Claudius as the new emperor, and he was a good administrator. In 43 AD he began the Roman conquest of Britain, a process that lasted until 84. Claudius issued twenty edicts a day, and he was constantly forced to consolidate his power by killing several senators. His niece and fourth wife Agrippina the Younger, the sister of the late Caligula, poisoned him in 54 in favor of their son Nero, who became the new emperor.